Tunneling-machine.



J. RETALLACK.

TUNNBLING MACHINE. APPmoATIoN rILnn 00T. 2, 1907.

Patented Deo. 15, 1908.

7. w l1 I. 2y Km; mmm A umm AG1 Tmp ELN Hmm .J.NA UU Tm P. D1 A 6 SHEETS-'SHEET 2.

Mm w am .mm E smh.. uw o @v O m 5% 11,.. IVMHIIHM l -n.1 l i HHN... I -.41 L

, ww... .NWN d -i :wif /f H m k .C m E e Am@ m m n M/ ...am f n 000k 9M 11B E 5s 1 b .T mw Nw m MW Lm P 7. o 9 l1 .Bum mmm A00, ww Lum L L AG1 Tmm Emo Bmw P P.

wi ha einen anonimi `J.RBTALLAGK.

TUNNBLING MAOEINE. APPLIoATIoN rILBD 00122, 1907.

906,741. Patented Dee.15,1908.

5 SHEETS-YBHBBT 5.

'EU PATENT JOSEPH RETALLACK, OF DENVERVCOLORADO, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF 'F.O J'i'illf JL..

REDFIELD, Oll DENVER, COLORADO.

TUNNE LING-MACHINE.

Specicatipn of Letters Patent.

Iatented Deo. 15, 194.35.

initiation alec october 2, 1907. semi No. 395,594.

.To all whom 'it may concern:

Bc it known that l, Josnru ltnTALLAoK, a citizen ol the United States, residing at Denver, in the county of Denver andState of Colorado, have invented a new and useful 'lunneling-illachine, of which the following is a specification.

rl his invention relates to drilling machines of that general class employed in the boring of tunnels and drifts.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a machine of reat'strength and simple construction, whic i may be operated at a sp'eed proportioned to the resisting qualities of the rock or other material being penetrated, and which may be readily adjusted while in operation should the character of the boring change.

A further'object of the invention is to rovidc a machine in which a-large number o independently operable' drills are mountedon a rev'oluble head which may be rotated and fed forward at any desiredspeed.

A still further object .oi' the invention is to providca means for insuring the most effective operation of the cutting drills, provision being iliade for always maintaining the same distance between the point of impact of the tools and the niain drill carrying head, so that all the stroke.

control of the several drills.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an .improved construction ofa drill head whichvwill permit of the ready passage of a workman to a point in advance of the head lshould it become necessary to examine, adjust, or-repair any of the mechanism;

Av still further obJect of the invention issto provide an improved means for removingit'he euttinffe and fragments ofrock from position in froiit'of the head 'and forconveyin'g the drills may operate under full' invention.

dri ls. -carriage showing theI nut and the gearing saine to the end ofthe tunnel or other n point.

A still further object of the i provide an improved feeding nature as to permit the free revoh' head without forward niovenwnt; i forward feed at dilerent speeds, and .to permit rearward movement when it is desired to Withdraw the head from the work.

With these and other objects in View, the invention comprises thc `mrions novel .feau tures of construction and combination and arrangement of parts, which will he herein after more fully described, and pointed out particularly in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings :-F igure l is a side elevation of a drilling or tunneling machine constructed in accordance with the Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view through the forward end of the device. Fi 3 is a face viewol the drill head and Fig'.l 4 is a side elevation of the rear parted to the threaded shaft and nut. ,l t, 5 is a transverse sectional VView showingA rear carriageL and operating mechanism in elevation. Fig. 6 a detail sectional. vir-w;- on an enlarged scale, of a portion oi one o the drill cylinders. Fig. 7 a longitudinal sectional view through the threaded sha1? es and nut, illustrating the means for locke. the utto the-shaft. Fig. 8 is a transvr sectillmal view through the nut' and shaft, on the linel8-8 of Fig. 7. Fig. 9 is :tf-longitudinal'section, with parts in elevation, of c n. tion of the rear end of the machine. 10 ,and`1-1 are detail views.

Corresponding.,lr parts in the several figures are indicated throughout by similar clnn-- acters of reference.

The machine is especially designed driving tunnels or drifts through rock, 1 it comprises, in general, a revolulile tool head which may be idly"rotated or fed forward or backward at pleasure.v The head carries a large number of independently actuated roel-1 drills which attach the face of the rock as the head is rotated.'y`l` The head. is carried hy threaded shaft that is hollow from ond to er andserves 'as' a duct for the pas:v air or other fluid to actuate the di v-ision is also' made forintroduciday nu; the drilling' point and for autonia connections through which movement is ini- 1.

y ments of rock pivoted gathering un and conveying away the fragas the tunneling operation proi ceeds.

the mechanism are supported by a massive carriage 10 that is provided with vertically adlustable legs 11 at the bottom of which are arranged rollers 12 so that the carriage may freely move lengthwise of the tunnel. The several legs may be suitably constructed so as to be adjusted independently of each other for the purpose of properly positioniiig the carriage.

To the upper portion of the carriage are struts 15 each formed of adjustably and the outer ends of the struts are pointed so that they may firmly engage in the roof of the tunnel. These struts may be inclined rearwardly or forwardly, but when' the .device is at work are preferably inclined rearwardly in order to resist the end thrust of the head and drills. To the rear of the lower portion of the carriage is pivoted an arm 16 having a pointed connected sections,

lower end arranged to engage the floor of the l tunnel and assist in resisting the backward thrust of the drilling mechanism. This carriage is bored for the reception of the forward end of a large shaft 1S that is held from independent longitudinal movement in one direction by an air chest 19 and in the opposite direction by a flange or collar 20 that is secured to the shaft and bears at its rear face against the carriage, while the forward face of the flange bears against the air chest l This shaft, as will hereinafter appear, yis hollow for practically its entire length, forming a duct 20 through which air passes to the chest 19 by way of a port 21, and the air is distributed from this chest to the several drills by pipes 22 having controllingvalves 22.

Secured rigidly to the forward end of the shaft is a drill supporting head 24 which, as shown in lFig. 3, is practically in the form of a pair of connected quadrants, the spaces between these lquadrants forming passages,

so that workmen may enter and examine, ad3ust or repair the drilling mechanism.

Secured to the forward face of the head 24 l are a large number of brackets 26 that are scattered at intervals from the center to 'the periphery of' lthe head, Ythe largest number being adjacent the for the increased area or surface to be attacked at that point. To ,each of these brackets is secured a compressed air drill 27 s of ordinary constructiomtlic drills being;

preferably of that rying chuck receives 'intermittent rotative,y

movement. Each of these drills has a cutting tool 28 of ordinary construction. The drills are so staggered that during the rota tive movement of the head every portion of the area of the end wall of the tunnel will be attacked. y

The drill head and the forward portion of periphery to compensate t e in which the tool carscarf-ii j vinasmuch as the area of the tunnel must l be greater than that 'l permit the aditance ofthe carriage, the outerl most biacketsiare arranged at a slight angle l to the horizontal, so that the outermost drills will be held at a corresponding angle, shown, for instance, in TEig. 2. osition of each drill may be adjusted by l lock 30 that is arranged to enter between l the bolting flanges of the bracket and the i drill cylinder, and which may be adjusted and held by a screw 3i. This adjust-nient is of considerable importance in that it permits control of the diameter of the tunnel and enables the workmen to readily adjust the angle of any drill in case the drill cutter should become unduly worn.

ain order to prevent breakage. in case of excessive movement of any of tons, both the front head n" i l l1k l l l l l l .no and the rear l head 34 of each drill cylinder is movable. The rear head is held in normal position by a 1 leaf spring 35, thecentral bowed portion of l which rests against the central portion of the rear head, while the opposite ends of the lspring are providedy with openings for the passage of bolts 36 that pass through openF ings formed in lugs on the cylinder andthe l front head thereof. The front end of this lbolt is provided with a headV that bears l against the lug, while the rear end has a nut lor nuts that bear against the spring.- .[n l

case of excessive rearward movement of the piston, the head 34 will yield outward against the bowed portion of the spring, while if the i forward movement is in excess. the front head will' yield -and in yielding will carry l with it the rod 36 against the stress exerted l by the end portions of the spring.

The head 24 carries one or more rods 3g at l the extreme forward ends of which are rollers 39, the axis of each roller being preferably in l a line radiating from the axis of rotation of l the head.

of the rock, and forms a limiting means for i preventing excessive forward feed of the head, so that the drills will not be crowded l and will be maintained in such 'position as to exert the most effective stroke at all times. For the convenience of the operator, one of these rods is yieldably mounted on a spring 40', so arranged that when the roller at the slight rearward 'movement of said rod. The rear end of the rod is operatively connected to'a target or-seinaphore arm 42 carried by the head which seri/esto display at the rear of 'the head, and within view of the olperator, a signal to stop forwardfeed. So ong as the semaphore remains in display posi- 1 tion, the feed is stopped, but the rotative movement of the head continues. When the signal moves to dis lay position, it is time for the restarting o the forward feed.

of the head in order to' the drill pis-v l l end of the rod is thrust against the end wall. L of the tunnel, the spring must yield to allow rl`he angular ist This roller is kept against the face the spring 101 will force the lug 92 carried by a shaft 93 that finds bearings in the motor frame and in a small or auxiliary bracket 94. This shaft 93 also carries a gear 96 that is in constant mesh with the motor pinion 76. pinion 7 6 imparted to the mit gear 70. in addition to these gearing connections provision is made 1 The latter pinion meshes with through which movement may be l the saine direction as the screw, much faster than that at which the screw is moved, owing to the reducing opposite to that in which the threaded shaft is rotated, and, consequently, effecting a material increase in the rate of longitudinal movement of the shaft.

- As the drillingI operation comes necessary to advance the carriage l in the directionof the carriage 10, and when this is to be dono, the gear 77 is moved into mesh with the mit gear 70, thus rotating the nut in but at a speed progresses, it be train between the armature shaftv and the gear 552. .his

' results in a forward travel on the nut and,

inward ov 1 tei' in advance of the drills, the friction and a small compression spring' 10i. From each 1 lug projects a small pin 102 which may pass 5 bracket when the respective lug is lifted out of engagement with the shaft groove 97. By turning the handled stem until the pin is out of alinement with the slot, the lug will thus be locked. in idle position.. `When the haiirile is turned until the pin A.lines with the slot, downward until said lugenters the groove 97 and locks the nut and shaft-for mutual rotative movenient.

Where the head and shaft are to be rotated without'f any feeding movement, a lug 98 is allowed to engage with the groove 97 in the shaft and the two gears 77 and 80 are moved to idle position, both out of mesh with the nut gear 70, Movement is then transmitted from the pinion 76 to gear 96, pinion 92, gear 91, pinion 9() and gear 82, thus revolving both the shaft and the nut without allowing any independent longitudinal movement of said shaft and nut. lf the feed is to pro- Cfress at the normal rate, the gears 77 and 8() idle position, and

D are allowed to remain in the lug 98 is moved out of engagement with the shaft. The friction band 72 is now tightened,for the purpose of holding the nut from rotative movement, and motion is imparted in the same manner as previously described to the gear $2, thus transmitting movement to the shaft and causing said shaft and the drill head to move forward as well as to rotate. During this operation, the carriage 61 is held from longitudinal movement. Should it be desired to increase the rate of forward movement of the drill head, as when readjusting the machine after a previous withdrawal from working position, t ie frame 7S is so adjusted as to move the gear 80 into mesh with the nut gear 7U, while the movement through the train of gears to gear S2 stillcontinues. As a result, movement is also transmitted from the gear 76 through pinion 76', small gears 77 and S0 to the nut gear 70,- thus rotating the latter in a direction .upward through a key-hole slot 1025 in the i l s i l l i consequently, of the carriage 61 in the direc- Lion of the carri YWhen it is d and drills iii order d to retract the drill head that a workman mav enis tightened, the gears 77 and S0 are thrown 'to idle position, and the niotor'is reversed.

The air for operating the drills is supplied through pipe 110 which in: f' be supported at intervals along the wall ofthe tunnel, and at the end of the i, pe is an inwardly directed branch 1li which .inmunicates with cyn lindrical box 112. his boi.: has an outwardly directed annular flange 'M3 which enters a recess formed. in the end of the shaft and against this flange bears a packing ring 114: that is held in place by an annular gland 115. ln order to minimize leakage of air, the box 112 carries an annular band 116 formed of flexible material and arranged. to be held outward over the joint between the meeting end-s of the box and shaft by the ressure of air;

The water supply through the air duct and l extends suitable stulling block 11S at the end of the box-or casing 112 andis coupled at a point outside the box toa water supply pipe.

1. In a tunneling machine, a revoliible and forwardly movable drill supporting head, and 'iieans for signaling when a predeter mined distance between the end wall of the tunnel has been reached.

,ln a tunneling machine, a revoluble and forwardly movable drill supporting head, means for limiting the advance of the head, and means for signaling when a predetermineddistance between the head and th end wall of the tunnel has been reached.

3. In a tunneling machine, a revoluble and forwardly movable drill supporting head, limiting rods carried by said head and arranged to engage the end wall of the tunnel, and' a signaling device connected to one of said rods.

4. In a tunneling machine, a revoluble and forwardly movable drill supporting head, a yieldably mounted endwise movable limiting rod supported by the head,l and a signaling member connected to said rod.

through a7 head and the. ,v 

